MILWAUKEE (AP) — The Milwaukee Brewers are preparing for the likelihood they will open the postseason without outfielder Sal Frelick after he injured his hip crashing into the right-field wall Friday against the New York Mets.
Although Frelick said an MRI revealed no ligament damage, he was walking with help from a crutch Saturday as he spoke to reporters. Frelick said he hurt his gluteus medius, a hip muscle that stabilizes the pelvis when someone is standing or walking.
“That’s what took the full brunt of the hip, which is good because it did its job,” Frelick said. “But it’s pretty crushed, so there’s a pretty bad contusion and that’s pretty much what’s not allowing me to walk. That’s the muscle that’s activated for holding yourself up.
“It’s kind of just how fast can we get that muscle back working and activated because it’s just kind of shut off right now from the impact.”
Brewers manager Pat Murphy said the team isn’t ruling out the possibility that Frelick could return at some point in the postseason. But Murphy added the fact that Frelick isn’t walking on his own makes it apparent the outfielder won’t be available anytime soon.
The NL Central champion Brewers will open the NL Wild Card Series on Tuesday in Milwaukee.
“It hurt my soul,” Murphy said of the injury.
Frelick got hurt while attempting to catch a drive from New York Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez that traveled into foul territory during the third inning of the Brewers’ 8-4 victory.
He crashed into the sidewall, and his left side made contact with the metal chain link inside a window in that wall that has no protective padding. Murphy said the window is there to allow the grounds crew to see what’s going on.
“Obviously I know there’s a wall there, and I’ve seen that window before just from shagging balls out there,” Frelick said. “But I never thought twice (about it).”
Frelick, 24, remained down for several minutes as Brewers medical staff went out to deep right field to check on him. He eventually walked slowly toward the dugout before being helped into the clubhouse.
He underwent an MRI on Saturday morning.
“We’re just trying to stay optimistic right now as a whole,” Frelick said. “Everyone, the doctors and the trainers, have said it's good news. It could have been way worse. The time frame is just kind of unknown. It’s how my body responds, and everyone kind of understands that.”
Frelick has been the Brewers’ regular right fielder and has played exceptional defense while batting .259 with a .320 on-base percentage, two homers, 32 RBIs and 18 steals in 145 games.
“This guy’s a huge part of our team, one of the best defenders on the team,” Murphy said. “We’re a team where defense is really important to us. He’s one of our key defensive players. Offensively he puts it in play and makes big things happen. He can cause havoc on the bases. It’s kind of our identity, and that’s taking a little piece out of our deal. It’s a big loss.”
Frelick’s injury means the Brewers likely will go with an outfield featuring Garrett Mitchell in right, Jackson Chourio in left and Blake Perkins in center for the start of the postseason.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB
Milwaukee Brewers' Sal Frelick, left, scores the second of two runs driven in on a single by Joey Ortiz, as Pittsburgh Pirates catcher Joey Bart looks away during the second inning of a baseball game in Pittsburgh, Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Milwaukee Brewers' Sal Frelick, center, walks off the field during the third inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Friday, Sept. 27, 2024, in Milwaukee. Frelick left the game after suffering an injury. (AP Photo/Aaron Gash)
Brewers expect to open playoffs without OF Sal Frelick as he recovers from hip injury
Brewers expect to open playoffs without OF Sal Frelick as he recovers from hip injury
PRAIRIE DU CHIEN, Wis. (AP) — Former President Donald Trump meandered Saturday through a list of grievances against Vice President Kamala Harris and other issues during an event intended to link his Democratic opponent to illegal border crossings.
A day after Harris discussed immigration at the U.S.-Mexico border, Trump spoke to a crowd in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, about immigration. He blamed Harris for migrants committing crimes after entering the U.S. illegally, alleging she was responsible for “erasing our border.”
“I will liberate Wisconsin from the mass migrant invasion,” he said. “We’re going to liberate the country.”
Trump hopes frustration over illegal immigration will translate to votes in Wisconsin and other crucial swing states. The Republican nominee has denounced people who cross the U.S.-Mexico border as “poisoning the blood of the country” and vowed to stage the largest deportation operation in American history if elected. And polls show Americans believe Trump would do a better job than Harris on handling immigration.
Trump shifted from topic to topic so quickly that it was hard to keep track of what he meant at times. He talked about the two assassination attempts against him and blamed the U.S. Secret Service for not being able to hold a large outdoor rally instead of an event in a smaller indoor space. But he also offered asides about climate change, Harris' father, how his beach body was better than President Joe Biden's, and a fly that was buzzing near him.
“I wonder where the fly came from,” he said. "Two years ago, I wouldn’t have had a fly up here. You’re changing rapidly. But we can’t take it any longer. We can’t take it any longer.”
Trump repeatedly brought up Harris' Friday event in Douglas, Arizona, where she announced a push to further restrict asylum claims beyond Biden's executive order announced earlier this year. Harris denounced Trump's handling of the border while president and his opposing a bipartisan border package earlier this year, saying Trump “prefers to run on a problem instead of fixing a problem.”
“I had to sit there and listen" to Harris last night Trump said, eliciting cheers. “And who puts it on? Fox News. They should not be allowed to put it on. It’s all lies. Everything she says is lies.”
The Republican nominee also intensified his personal attacks against Harris, insulting her as “mentally impaired” and a “disaster.”
Trump professed not to understand what Harris meant when she said he was responsible for taking children from their parents. Under his administration, border agents separated children from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border in a policy that was condemned globally as inhumane and one that Trump himself ended under pressure from his own party.
Harris, at a rally in San Francisco, told supporters there were “two very different visions for our nation” and voters see it “every day on the campaign trial.”
“Donald Trump is the same old tired show,” she said. “The same tired playbook we have heard for years.”
She Trump was “a very unserious man." “However the consequences of putting him back in the White House are extremely serious.”
At Trump's event, on either side of the stage were poster-sized mug shots of men in the U.S. illegally accused of a crime, including Alejandro Jose Coronel Zarate, a case Trump cited in his speech.
Wisconsin Republicans in recent days have cited the story of Coronel Zarate's arrest in Prairie du Chien as more evidence that people in the country illegally are committing crimes across the United States, not just in southern border states. Prosecutors charged Coronel Zarate on Sept. 18 with sexual assault, child abuse, strangulation and domestic abuse. His lawyers declined to comment.
Police Chief Kyle Teynor posted statements on Facebook saying that Coronel Zarate is not a U.S. citizen and that he had two fake immigration documents, including a fake Social Security card. The chief added that Coronel Zarate’s tattoos indicate he’s affiliated with the Tren de Aragua gang, which started in Venezuelan prisons and is posing a growing threat in the U.S.
Speaking to the crowd Saturday, Teynor stressed to the crowd that Coronel Zarate is the only Venezuelan gang member his agency has encountered, but the violence his two alleged victims suffered at his hands earlier this month was very real.
Republicans including U.S. Sen. Derrick Van Orden, who is from Prairie du Chien, have criticized authorities in both Minneapolis and Madison for letting Coronel Zarate go, saying they essentially allowed him to attack the woman in Prairie du Chien. They have accused both jurisdictions of being sanctuaries for people in the country illegally.
Van Orden told the crowd Trump was the only one who could restore order.
“You’re going to see the one man who has enough strength and courage of conviction to stand up to anyone up to and including being shot in the head for us," he said.
Long reported from Washington. Associated Press Writer Will Weissert reported from San Francisco.
Supporters cheer as Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign event Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Prairie du Chien, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks during a rally, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Prairie du Chien, Wis. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign event, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Prairie du Chien, Wis. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
Supporters wait for Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump to arrive at a rally, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Prairie du Chien, Wis. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
Supporters wait for Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump to arrive at a rally, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Prairie du Chien, Wis. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
Merchandise vendor Sam Smith, of Sarasota, Fla., stands with his dog Milo while waiting for Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump to arrive at a rally, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Prairie du Chien, Wis. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
A supporter waits for Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump to arrive at a rally, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Prairie du Chien, Wis. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
A supporter waits for Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump to arrive at a rally, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Prairie du Chien, Wis. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
Supporters pose for a photo while waiting for Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump to arrive at a rally, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Prairie du Chien, Wis. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump arrives for a town hall event at Macomb Community College Friday, Sept. 27, 2024, in Warren, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
